Brisbane | The Guardianhttp://www.theguardian.com/travel/brisbane
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Has Brisbane outgrown President Obama's 'Brisvegas' wisecrack?http://www.theguardian.com/cities/2015/jan/05/has-brisbane-outgrown-president-obamas-brisvegas-wisecrack
<p>When the US president talked up Queensland’s capital city recently, its tourism chief worried he was being ‘derogatory and negative’. So why is Brisbane so sensitive about its image?</p><p>It was an endorsement that, seemingly, no amount of tourism marketing dollars could buy – the American presidential seal of approval. During a speech at the G20 summit in Brisbane last November, US premier Barack Obama paid tribute to this “stunning” city, dusting off the state of Queensland’s old tourism slogan: “Beautiful one day, perfect the next.”</p><p>Obama even adopted some local lingo, <a href="http://www.theguardian.com/world/2014/nov/15/g20-barack-obama-leaves-his-woes-at-home-as-he-woos-young-australia">referring to Australia’s third-largest city as “Brisvegas”</a> – a nickname that emerged in the mid-1990s as a tongue-in-cheek association with America’s glitzy gambling city, and which was used by out-of-towners to mock Brisbane’s (then) lack of sophisticated nightlife and cultural scene. </p> <a href="http://www.theguardian.com/cities/2015/jan/05/has-brisbane-outgrown-president-obamas-brisvegas-wisecrack">Continue reading...</a>CitiesBrisbaneBrisbaneAustralasiaAustraliaG20 Brisbane 2014G20Mon, 05 Jan 2015 23:53:27 GMThttp://www.theguardian.com/cities/2015/jan/05/has-brisbane-outgrown-president-obamas-brisvegas-wisecrackPhotograph: Glenn Hunt/Getty ImagesBrisbane was keen to stress its colourful side during the summit of world leaders.Photograph: Glenn Hunt/Getty ImagesBrisbane was keen to stress its colourful side during the summit of world leaders.Photograph: Richelle Harrison PlesseQueensland tourism chief Daniel GschwindPhotograph: Richelle Harrison PlesseQueensland tourism chief Daniel GschwindPhotograph: Andrew Taylor/AAPPhotograph: Andrew Taylor/AAPRichelle Harrison Plesse in Brisbane2015-01-05T23:53:27ZEating on the roadhttp://www.theguardian.com/travel/australia-food-blog/2014/dec/23/healthy-eating-on-the-road-from-brisbane-to-melbourne
<p>From Brisbane to Melbourne - being on the road doesn’t have to mean pies and hot chips. <strong>Anneli Knight</strong> tracks down the best organic food just off the Hume and Pacific Highways.</p><p>The good Aussie road trip has grown up. No longer is it all about greasy deep-fried chicken wings, drive-through production-line hamburgers and bright orange fizzy drinks.</p><p>These days when you drive the Hume Highway between Melbourne and Sydney, and the Pacific Highway between Sydney and Brisbane, you can find healthy, gourmet or organic food stops every few hours along the way. But they’re not as easy to spot as the golden arches.</p> <a href="http://www.theguardian.com/travel/australia-food-blog/2014/dec/23/healthy-eating-on-the-road-from-brisbane-to-melbourne">Continue reading...</a>AustralasiaCoffeeHealth and fitnessHealth & wellbeingTravelBrisbaneMelbourneSydneyTue, 23 Dec 2014 04:20:23 GMThttp://www.theguardian.com/travel/australia-food-blog/2014/dec/23/healthy-eating-on-the-road-from-brisbane-to-melbournePhotograph: AlamyJust because you’re on the road doesn’t mean you can’t have an organic coffee.Photograph: AlamyJust because you’re on the road doesn’t mean you can’t have an organic coffee.Photograph: PA/PAPick your own strawberries to take back in the car with you.Photograph: PA/PAPick your own strawberries to take back in the car with you.Photograph: The Guardian.Photograph: The Guardian.Anneli Knight2014-12-23T04:20:23ZWandering among Japan's wild creations at Future of Beauty exhibitionhttp://www.theguardian.com/fashion/2014/dec/01/looking-back-at-japanese-fashion-at-the-future-of-beauty-exhibition
<p>Japan’s style tribes and catwalk creations are bought to life in Brisbane at an exhibition of Japan’s best designers </p><p>In Japan, non-conformity manifests outwardly.<br /></p><p>Even the eccentrics and rebels find it hard to shirk their exacting social obligations or the prescriptive ritual that pervades language. And so striking departures from the norm are sublimated into street fashion, which for decades now has offered up everyday statements wilder than anything in the west outside of music festivals or other excuses to play dress up.</p> <a href="http://www.theguardian.com/fashion/2014/dec/01/looking-back-at-japanese-fashion-at-the-future-of-beauty-exhibition">Continue reading...</a>Australian fashionFashionExhibitionsDesignArt and designJapanBrisbaneBrisbaneCultureLife and styleMon, 01 Dec 2014 01:39:07 GMThttp://www.theguardian.com/fashion/2014/dec/01/looking-back-at-japanese-fashion-at-the-future-of-beauty-exhibitionPhotograph: Charisma Jonesford/flickrKawaii girl.Photograph: Charisma Jonesford/flickrKawaii girl.Photograph: Supplied.Kawakuborei Spring Summer collection 1997- Kyoto Costume Institute at Goma.Photograph: Supplied.Kawakuborei Spring Summer collection 1997- Kyoto Costume Institute at Goma.Photograph: Goma/Supplied.Kawakuborei Autumn Winter collection 2012 - 2013 - Kyoto Costume InstitutePhotograph: Goma/Supplied.Kawakuborei Autumn Winter collection 2012 - 2013 - Kyoto Costume InstitutePhotograph: Etienne Laurent/EPAYohji Yamamoto S/S 2014.Photograph: Etienne Laurent/EPAYohji Yamamoto S/S 2014.Photograph: Tolga Akmen / Barcroft Media/Tolga Akmen / Barcroft MediaJapanese fashion is an exercise in fusion.Photograph: Tolga Akmen / Barcroft Media/Tolga Akmen / Barcroft MediaJapanese fashion is an exercise in fusion.Joshua Robertson2014-12-01T01:39:07ZBehind the scenes at Otello - videohttp://www.theguardian.com/culture/australia-culture-blog/video/2013/oct/24/opera-otello-video-queensland
Simon Phillips directs this production of Otello which uses a contemporary setting to create what Phillips hopes is a "vivid and visceral" take on Verdi's opera. The director is influenced by recent military conflicts, with the show set entirely on an aircraft carrier. In this co-production with the Cape Town Opera, getting its Australian premiere in Brisbane, the American tenor Frank Porrett plays the lead role opposite Cheryl Barker. <br /><br /><a href="http://www.qpac.com.au/event/OQ_Otello_13.aspx">• Otello, Lyric Theatre, Qpac, until November 2, then touring. Tickets from $68.</a> <a href="http://www.theguardian.com/culture/australia-culture-blog/video/2013/oct/24/opera-otello-video-queensland">Continue reading...</a>OperaBrisbaneGiuseppe VerdiCultureClassical musicThu, 24 Oct 2013 22:51:45 GMThttp://www.theguardian.com/culture/australia-culture-blog/video/2013/oct/24/opera-otello-video-queenslandOpera QueenslandOtello by Opera Queensland Photograph: Opera QueenslandGuardian Staff2013-10-24T22:51:45ZTop 10 hotels, hostels and campsites in and around Brisbanehttp://www.theguardian.com/travel/2013/sep/13/top-10-hotels-hostels-campsites-brisbane
Going beach-hopping in Queensland? We've got places to stay for all budgets and tastes, from a boutique hotel in a 100-year-old building to a walk-in campsite on a sand island<p>A superior backpacker experience, Aussie Way may be a touch removed from the city centre, but this Cricket Street property's peacefulness is a fair trade for any inconvenience. Set in a rambling 19th-century, heritage-listed <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Queenslander_%28architecture%29" title="">Queenslander</a> (traditional timber with an ornate veranda), Aussie Way isn't a destination for backpacker parties, tending to instead attract the quieter and perhaps slightly older traveller. A bunch of public transport options and the <a href="http://www.thebarracks.info/" title="">Barracks precinct </a>(a classy shopping centre) are both around the corner, while a stroll to the city will take you through the beautiful <a href="http://www.romastreetparkland.com/Pages/default.aspx" title="">Roma Street Parkland</a>. Perhaps the best backpacking lodge in Brisbane.<br /><em>• 34 Cricket Street, Brisbane. +61 7 3369 0711, </em><a href="http://www.aussiewaybackpackers.com/" title=""><em>aussiewaybackpackers.com</em></a><em>. Doubles A$68 (&pound;40)</em></p> <a href="http://www.theguardian.com/travel/2013/sep/13/top-10-hotels-hostels-campsites-brisbane">Continue reading...</a>BrisbaneHotelsHostelsBed and breakfastsCampingAustraliaAustralasiaTravelBrisbane festival 2013CultureFri, 13 Sep 2013 12:40:10 GMThttp://www.theguardian.com/travel/2013/sep/13/top-10-hotels-hostels-campsites-brisbanePRInchcolm Boutique Hotel, BrisbanePRThe Collingwood, Paddington, BrisbaneMauro Risch/MeritonCUBE apartment, Herschel Street, Brisbane Photograph: Mauro Risch/MeritonPRRoyal Albert Hotel, BrisbaneTourism and Events QueenslandStradbroke Island, Queensland Photograph: Tourism and Events QueenslandTourism and Events QueenslandShipwrecks off Moreton Island, Queensland Photograph: Tourism and Events QueenslandPRSerenity cabin, Wongari Eco Retreat, Lamington, QueenslandPRSundancer apartments, QueenslandPRHalse Lodge, Noosa Heads, QueenslandTourism and Events QueenslandRoma Street Parkland in Brisbane. Photograph: Tourism and Events QueenslandTourism and Events QueenslandRoma Street Parkland, Brisbane Photograph: Tourism and Events QueenslandMatt Shea2013-09-13T12:40:10ZTop 10 budget restaurants and cafes in Brisbanehttp://www.theguardian.com/travel/2013/sep/12/top-10-budget-restaurants-brisbane
With Brisbane Festival in full swing, we round up the best places cheap cafes and restaurants in the city – whether you fancy a big bowl of ramen, delicate French pastries or beer and burgers<p>This is not your traditional-style Vietnamese restaurant. The family who own Mrs Luu's used to run one of the most popular Vietnamese restaurants in Brisbane, but for this latest venture, they have taken just a handful of favourites and given them a contemporary twist. The &quot;three little piggies'&quot;<em> banh mi</em> (Vietnamese baguette sandwich) is a combination of barbecued pork, Vietnamese-style ham and their own porchetta, piled high with crunchy, fragrant salad ($7). There are six varieties of <em>goi cuon </em>rice paper rolls (two for $6) and daily blackboard specials, such as green papaya salad with king prawns and pork belly, or Mrs Luu's own <em>pho thai nam </em>(rare beef brisket and noodle soup). Cash only, but there is an ATM on the premises.<br /><em>• 25 Railway Terrace, Milton, +61 (0) 7 3369 5760</em></p> <a href="http://www.theguardian.com/travel/2013/sep/12/top-10-budget-restaurants-brisbane">Continue reading...</a>BrisbaneAustraliaBrisbane festival 2013AustralasiaTravelFood and drinkFood & drinkThu, 12 Sep 2013 10:22:00 GMThttp://www.theguardian.com/travel/2013/sep/12/top-10-budget-restaurants-brisbanePRA salad from Nom NomsPRPRPRPRSteve Parish/CorbisSouth Bank beach, Brisbane. Photograph: Steve Parish/CorbisMorag Kobez2013-09-12T10:22:00ZThe world's most rock'n'roll hotelshttp://www.theguardian.com/travel/2011/sep/30/rock-and-roll-hotels-worldwide
Champagne in the bathtub and TVs in the pool ... Rock &amp; Roll Hotels by <strong>Greg Simmons</strong> is a new guide to the places where rock stars have made their mark – and not just on the carpet<p>Many of rock'n'roll's most famous decadent dalliances have taken place in hotels. Sure, some places may have had facelifts since the bad old days, but the stories of wanton mayhem hang obdurately in the air. In my book I've tried to give a taste of this spirit while also listing newer hotels, each of them with their own distinct rock'n'roll swagger. It's part whisky-soaked music history, part travel guide for those who'd be delighted to learn that Led Zeppelin once drove Harleys through their hotel lobby. </p><p>You may no longer be able to throw your TV set out of the window (it's probably a flatscreen screwed to the wall) or drive your Roller into the swimming pool, but at all these places you're sure to get more than just a chocolate on your pillow – and they don't all require a rock star's wallet to stay the night.</p> <a href="http://www.theguardian.com/travel/2011/sep/30/rock-and-roll-hotels-worldwide">Continue reading...</a>HotelsTravelLos AngelesUnited StatesLondonEuropeParisAmsterdamSan FranciscoMontrealLiverpoolLas VegasBangkokBrisbaneBarcelonaMusicFri, 30 Sep 2011 21:45:01 GMThttp://www.theguardian.com/travel/2011/sep/30/rock-and-roll-hotels-worldwidePRPRPRPRAllan Randu/CorbisJohn Lennon and Yoko Ono in bed at the Fairmont The Queen Elizabeth, Montreal. Photograph: Allan Randu/CorbisPRPRPRClockwise from top left: The Portobello, London, swimming pool mayhem, Chateau Marmont, Sanctum Soho, Billy Idol, Heartbreak HotelAllan Randu/CorbisJohn Lennon and Yoko Ono in bed iat the Fairmont the Queen Elizabeth, Montreal. Photograph: Allan Randu/CorbisGreg Simmons2011-09-30T21:45:01ZInsiders' guide to Australiahttp://www.theguardian.com/travel/2010/nov/27/australia-ashes-cities-sydney-melbourne
All eyes may be on the Ashes right now, but there's so much more to explore in Australia. Our experts pick highlights of the five host cities, plus cultural, wineland and wildlife experiences elsewhere<p>Art fans curious about Chinese contemporary art should go to <strong>White Rabbit Gallery</strong> in Chippendale (<a href="http://www.whiterabbitcollection.org/" title="">whiterabbitcollection.org</a>), a four-storey private collection that's free to visit. The <strong>Art Gallery NSW</strong> (<a href="http://www.artgallery.nsw.gov.au/" title="">artgallery.nsw.gov.a</a>u) now also has a superb Asian wing, with a new permanent indigenous collection.</p> <a href="http://www.theguardian.com/travel/2010/nov/27/australia-ashes-cities-sydney-melbourne">Continue reading...</a>AustralasiaThe AshesBrisbaneSydneyMelbournePerthCultural tripsFood and drinkAdventure travelSurfingBars and clubsShopping tripsTravelAshes 2010-11Sat, 27 Nov 2010 00:06:07 GMThttp://www.theguardian.com/travel/2010/nov/27/australia-ashes-cities-sydney-melbourneAlamyCottesloe Beach, Perth, Western Australia. Photograph: AlamyAlamyCottesloe Beach, Perth, Western Australia. Photograph: AlamyRachel Dixon2010-11-27T00:06:07ZAshes fans' guide: Beyond Brisbanehttp://www.theguardian.com/travel/2010/nov/26/brisbane-travelfoodanddrink-ashes-queensland
Not quite "Brisvegas", but certainly not "the most ordinary place in the world"... Brisbane's gems are to be found beyond the city<p>This time four years ago at the opening Ashes Test in Brisbane, I was tempted to follow the trajectory of <a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=A7Y6T44tzIc" title="">Steve Harmison's ludicrously wayward first delivery</a> – and just keep going, all the way out of The Gabba stadium. As I closed my eyes in disbelief, I pictured a stretch of beach a hundred miles up the Sunshine Coast of Queensland. When I opened them again, all I could see was four ocker Aussies in the seats in front of me spraying beer around in sarcastic celebration. It was only 10.01am and it was all over.</p><p>I wanted out – but not because I don't like Brisbane. I do. I like the soupy warm embrace its subtropical climate extends to a wintery Pom. I like the <a href="http://travel.ninemsn.com.au/australia/brisbane/654267/brisbanes-historic-pubs">unpretentious Queensland pubs</a>, the villagey neighbourhoods, the Moreton Bay Bugs, and the pies. I like it all the more because it has laboured with the uncool underdog tag for so long in comparison with Sydney and Melbourne. &quot;Brisbane is so sleepy, so slatternly, so sprawlingly unlovely… It is simply the most ordinary place in the world,&quot; said author David Malouf in his semi-autobiographical novel Johnno. And he's one of their own.</p> <a href="http://www.theguardian.com/travel/2010/nov/26/brisbane-travelfoodanddrink-ashes-queensland">Continue reading...</a>BrisbaneFood and drinkAustraliaTravelFri, 26 Nov 2010 18:01:09 GMThttp://www.theguardian.com/travel/2010/nov/26/brisbane-travelfoodanddrink-ashes-queenslandJon Hicks/CorbisSlacker's paradise... Streets Beach in Brisbane. Photograph: Jon Hicks/CorbisJon Hicks/CorbisBrisbane, Australia Photograph: Jon Hicks/CorbisAndy Pietrasik2010-11-26T18:01:09ZAshes fans' guide to Brisbanehttp://www.theguardian.com/travel/2010/nov/19/ashes-brisbane-city-guide
Ahead of the first Test match in The Ashes at the Gabba next week, we take you on a tour of Brisbane's best-kept secrets<p>Rapidly shedding its sunshine and superficiality &quot;Brisvegas&quot; image, the Queensland capital is more than just the Gabba. But you have to get out from the shade of its cookie cutter Central Business District towers and into its inner neighbourhoods, such as leafy Paddington or post-industrial Fortitude Valley – &quot;the Valley&quot; – to really savour its laid- back local vibe.</p> <a href="http://www.theguardian.com/travel/2010/nov/19/ashes-brisbane-city-guide">Continue reading...</a>BrisbaneAustraliaFood and drinkCultural tripsBars and clubsTravelHotelsTop 10sThe AshesSportAshes 2010-11Fri, 19 Nov 2010 10:22:56 GMThttp://www.theguardian.com/travel/2010/nov/19/ashes-brisbane-city-guideNick Rains/CorbisOutdoor living on the Brisbane River. Photograph: Nick Rains/CorbisJon Hicks/CorbisBrisbane, Australia Photograph: Jon Hicks/CorbisRobert Bevan2010-11-19T10:22:56ZTrue tales: One night in Brisbanehttp://www.theguardian.com/music/musicblog/2008/oct/15/brisbane-australia-venues
<p>For this week's blog, I thought I would take you on a tour of my home town, and a typical night spent looking for new music in bars and dives.</p><p><a href="http://www.tabunightclub.com.au/">The Tabu</a> is dank. Small and dank, and over in the corner is a sign saying The Hellfire Club, where men fatter and older than me congregate in small circles, wearing rubber and scour the room for the one attractive person. You can almost taste the semen. On one side, there's a gentleman's club (which means the door staff wear suits) and on the other, an old-fashioned peep show where you can buy a couple of hundred tickets for a few dollars. A few rocker types litter the tables, occasionally crawling up the stairs to smoke on Brunswick Street alongside the homeless and pimps; there's Tom from <a href="http://www.rockinghorse.net">Rocking Horse Records</a> (Brisbane's oldest independent record store) and Jo from Brisbane's own Breeders tribute band, <a href="http://www.myspace.com/butcherbirds">Butcher Birds</a>, neither feeling as psychedelic as the night before. </p> <a href="http://www.theguardian.com/music/musicblog/2008/oct/15/brisbane-australia-venues">Continue reading...</a>Pop and rockMusicCultureAustraliaBrisbaneWed, 15 Oct 2008 13:51:41 GMThttp://www.theguardian.com/music/musicblog/2008/oct/15/brisbane-australia-venuesPRLofly Hangar, Brisbane ... 'An oasis of vagrant sofas in a city of wealth' Photograph: PRPRPhotograph: PREverett True2008-10-15T13:51:41ZFive best ... Ways to escape the Asheshttp://www.theguardian.com/travel/2006/nov/18/australia.fivebest.saturday
<p><strong>1. Brisbane Nov 23-27</strong></p><p>Flights with Balloons Over Brisbane set off just after daybreak when the Glasshouse Mountains can be seen rising over the horizon to the north and the drunken Barmy Army can be seen staggering home. An hour-long dawn ride finishes up with a slap-up brekkie on landing.<br /> <strong>&middot;</strong> <a href="http://www.balloonsoverbrisbane.com.au">balloonsoverbrisbane.com.au</a>. &pound;105 including breakfast.</p> <a href="http://www.theguardian.com/travel/2006/nov/18/australia.fivebest.saturday">Continue reading...</a>AdelaideAustraliaTravelFive best &#8230;Life and styleBrisbaneSat, 18 Nov 2006 17:12:39 GMThttp://www.theguardian.com/travel/2006/nov/18/australia.fivebest.saturdayGuardian Staff2006-11-18T17:12:39ZG'day, sporthttp://www.theguardian.com/travel/2001/jul/14/australia.guardiansaturdaytravelsection
Thousands of Brits used the Lions tour as an excuse for the holiday of a lifetime Down Under. Andy Pietrasik joins them on the Brisbane leg and is treated to more than a sporting bonanza<p>'You here for the Lions tour?&quot; asks the taxi driver delivering me to a restaurant in the Waterfront district of Brisbane. Me and 12,000 others, I say, bracing myself for yet another onslaught about Australian sporting supremacy. Instead, he comes at me from a different angle: Australia as a world-beating place to live. &quot;So when are you moving over?&quot; he quips. </p><p>Success and sunshine breed confidence, and Australians are superconfident that when we get Down Under, we'll find so little to whinge about that we'll actually end up wanting to stay. Understandably so. This is the life: it's the middle of their winter, but the sun is shining, I'm down to T-shirt and shorts, and I'm about to lunch on a plate of the freshest fish with a glass or two of chardy for less than a tenner. </p> <a href="http://www.theguardian.com/travel/2001/jul/14/australia.guardiansaturdaytravelsection">Continue reading...</a>AustraliaTravelBrisbaneSat, 14 Jul 2001 18:07:52 GMThttp://www.theguardian.com/travel/2001/jul/14/australia.guardiansaturdaytravelsectionAndy Pietrasik2001-07-14T18:07:52Z